Ice and Fire
by Sanura Bey
Summary: Victoria Barton was taken from her family years ago due to her birth given powers. She's been tested on and experimented with but still holds onto hope her brother will save her one day. She catches the eye of a young Sokovian and that's when her life changes, but for better or for worse?
1. Let the Tests Begin

I watched as the scientists bring in a lot of the locals, volunteers I was told, and put them into small cells across from my very large one. Strucker stood in a small box they'd placed in my cell for visitors so I couldn't use my powers on them.

"And they all volunteered for this madness?" I asked him.

"They want to help their country, I offered them the means to do so Victoria." He answered.

"So you didn't tell them what they were getting themselves into. Not really." I said watching them argue with two people about being in separate cells. They looked very much alike so I assumed they were siblings. Probably used to being together through everything.

"I told them what they wanted to know. But you know how that goes." He told me and I gave him a dark look. He took me from my family years ago shortly after my older brother had married the most wonderful woman he'd met. They'd told me if I cooperated with them I'd be able to go home to my family. It's been years since then.

"What's next?" I asked knowing any other questions would be useless. We'd been through this questioning and answering before and it got me nowhere.

"The doctors will check their health before the initial experiments begin. After that, you will be needed." He told me.

"What? Your magic scepter won't give them abilities on its own?" I asked sarcastically. He gave me a stern look and I smirked out the window of my cell. The siblings were finally in their cells trying to stare their way through the wall separating them. "When will you need me?"

"I'll come for you. Armed." He told me before leaving the small room. He always came armed when they tried to experiment on me. The scientists and doctors checked the volunteers quickly in the cells before I moved to the bookshelf and picked up a book before sitting in an armchair they'd given me and opening to the page I'd left off on. I looked up when I felt eyes on me and saw one of the siblings staring at me, his dark hair falling into his eyes. His brown eyes looked confused into my blue-gray ones before I lowered my gaze once more.

"Miss Barton." I looked to see Dr. List in the small room Strucker was in before. "Are you ready for your tests?" he asked me and I sighed before putting my book down once more.

"Do I really have a choice?" I asked sarcastically before getting up and putting the book away and walking to him. The guards outside my room escorted us out to the lab and I laid on the table they'd run their experiments on. "What will it be today? Operation while doing 20 questions or just operation?" I asked the doctor.

"Neither. I just wanted to run a few tests on your compatibility with the scepter." He told me as he placed the wires on my body.

"What?" I asked confused. I followed the wires to see a scepter I'd never seen before. "What is that?" I asked starting to pull at the restraints on me. I'd gotten used to the pain of him playing operation on my body, but I didn't know what this scepter would do to me or what small abilities I had. I could control a small amount of fire and water, create things in the air with them but not much else.

"Don't worry. All this should do is increase your powers. It will hurt." Dr. List told me and I tried to prepare myself for what was to come but I still screamed until my lungs burned before passing out completely hours later.

* * *

When I woke again I was in my cell on the crappy bed they'd provided me. When I tried to move I found it very difficult to do so. I groaned in pain as I rolled to my side and sat up. I found food on the ground close to the door. I knew Strucker and Dr. List were watching me but I could feel more than just their eyes. I looked out of the corner of my eyes to see the volunteers who could see me watching me curiously and fearfully. I knew they knew now what to expect from these experiments. I looked away from them and stood up slowly feeling ice creep up my legs to support me as I walked to the try of food they'd left for me. I knew I'd have to learn if I could do anything with my powers soon, but I wanted to regain what strength I'd lost by sleeping. I reached for the food only for it to burn to a crisp in front of me, the silver tray blackened. I looked at my hand shocked, I'd never burned anything before, not like this anyway. I sat back on the bed and let the ice melt away from my legs while I thought about what happened. Ice had never helped me walk like that before. I'd never burned anything like that before. What did they do to me? What did the scepter do to my powers? I turned and looked at the few locals who were still staring at me in shock. I turned to the one way mirror I knew Strucker and Dr. List were looking through. They were always watching somehow.

"What did you do to me?" I asked angrily to the mirror. I glared at the mirror before covering it with ice. Let them look through that.


	2. Phase Two

Every time the ice melted, once or twice, I covered the one way mirror with ice again. My ice was lasting longer each time. My fire was able to coat my body without damaging my clothes, much. The first time was embarrassing since I was constantly being watched by the locals across from me. I'd only tried having my fire go up my arm, it covered my whole body and burnt almost all my clothes off. Not a day to repeat. When I covered a part of me with my ice then applied my fire, it didn't melt. Over the course of two weeks, half the volunteers were dead. As Strucker said, they started with checking their health before starting to experiment on the people.

"Victoria." I turned to see Strucker standing in his little protected box.

"What do you want?" I asked him.

"Phase two is about to begin." He told me.

"Why should I help you?" I asked him angrily.

"You owe us." He said and I gave him a look. "We've not only taken care of you, but we've helped you expand your powers."

"You kidnapped me from my home. You experimented on me." I corrected him. "I owe you nothing."

"I'd hoped to do this without force." He sighed before signaling someone. I turned to the only door as a group of men came in. I backed away from them slowly.

"Get away from me!" I ordered before using my ice to cover the floor of the room between me and them.

"Don't make this more difficult for yourself." Strucker told me.

"The only way you're getting me out that door is by force." I told them.

"That can be arranged." He said. His men came at me and I tried to keep them away with my fire, but they were a divergent for the men behind them who managed to knock me down.

"Get off!" I ordered as they pinned my hands behind my back. Strucker had his men dragged me to the testing area. The scepter was still in the same place as before, but now there were two operating tables. The men holding me held me down as the scientists strapped me to the table and injected me with something. "What are you doing to me?!" The men went to get their test subject as the scientists prepared to link me to the subject. "Let me go!" I warned. They ignored me as they continued their work. I tried as hard as I could to be released. I tried using my powers, but I couldn't access them. "What have you done to me?!"

"Enough!" Strucker ordered before leaning over me. "We neutralized your abilities until we are done here." He told me and I struggled some more. The first subject they brought in was the young man they'd separated from his sister.

"Don't do this, Strucker. You'll kill them." I warned him as they started hooking him up.

"They only have to do this once. You on the other hand…." I looked up at him before looking back to the boy.

"You'll still kill them." I warned once more. Once the man was strapped down and plugged into me both me and the scepter they started the machine. We both screamed as they did their work. Strucker was right, he only had to do this once I was going to be doing this to all their volunteers. Luckily, I passed out as they were bringing in the second subject.

* * *

When I woke again, I was in a new room. A smaller one. I looked around weakly before recognizing the room. A test subject must have died in this room last week. I tried to move only to cry out in pain. I assessed the damages to myself and used my ice to try and numb the pain for now. I'd use my fire to try and ease it later. Once I was number I got up and used my ice to help keep me stable. I moved to the window to see my old cell was completely torched. I turned and saw a mirror before going to it. I hit it a few times before checking the edges on it. Where was the door to this place? I heard someone bang into the wall and moved to it slowly. I touched it gingerly before placing my ear to it, trying to listen to the other side. I looked back to my old cell and deduced I was next to the twins. But what hit the wall? I hit the wall, trying to make the person on the other side answer. Nothing. I sighed before sitting back down on my bed.

* * *

Third POV

A few weeks later, Shield was gone and a majority of volunteers were dead.

"It's over." Dr. List told Strucker. "Fury's released everything to the public."

"Everything he knows about." Strucker corrected.

"Struker, if they get word of our work her, if the find out we serve Hydra…" Dr. List started saying before Strucker stopped him.

"Hydra. Shield. Two sides of a coin that's no longer currency." Strucker told him as they moved to the lab and the scepter. "What we have is worth more than any of them ever knew. We've only scratched the surface, and already…" Strucker dropped his sentence before going to the test subjects. "There are other facilities doing Hydra's good work around the world. We'll feed them to Captain America and his colorful friends."

"Keep them off our scent. What about the volunteers and her?" Dr. List asked him.

"The dead will be buried so deep their own ghosts won't be able to find them." Strucker told him.

"And the survivors?" Dr. List asked him as they stopped.

"The twins and Victoria." Strucker said looking into the one way mirror. The woman, Wanda, was moving the blocks with her mind and playing with them in the air. The man, Pietro, was running into walls, trying to control his new found speed. Victoria was sitting on her bed opening and closing her hand in thought, playing with the two elements in her control, while staring at the wall that connected her cell to Pietro's.

"Sooner or later they will meet these three." Dr. List warned.

"It's not a world of spies anymore, not even a world of heroes." Strucker told him. "This is the age of miracles, Dr. There's nothing more horrifying than a miracle." Wanda smashed one of her blocks.


End file.
